This invention relates to an improvement in a type of lipstick container which is commonly used in the cosmetic field.
The prior art lipstick container generally comprises a cylinder having a rotatable knob disposed at its bottom end. A lipstick is mounted inside and extends out of the top of the cylinder. Rotation of the knob causes a mechanism in the cylinder to move the lipstick longitudinally. In this manner, the lipstick is placed in its uppermost position with a large amount of the lipstick exposed for application and returned to its lowest position with respect to the cylinder for storage.
The knob has a tubular slide extending upwardly therefrom, and the tubular slide is provided with vertical slots. The cylinder is rotatably mounted surrounding the tubular slide, and the cylinder includes an outer spiral member having spiral slots formed on its interior surface adjacent the tubular slide. A cup member is slidably mounted in the tubular slide and has posts which protrude through the slots of the tubular slide and into the spiral slots of the outer spiral member. The lipstick is received in the cup. Thus, the cup is secured against rotation with respect to the tubular slide, and rotation of the cylinder relative to the knob and tubular slide causes the posts of the cup to travel up the spiral slots of the outer spiral member, raising or lowering the lipstick according to the direction of rotation.
It is desirable to be able to determine the color of the lipstick without opening the lipstick container, and therefore, when the lipstick is in its lowest position, the top portion of the lipstick extends outside the cylinder in the prior art lipstick container. A clear plastic cap is also provided which generally extends from above the top of the exposed lipstick down the sides of the cylinder to the knob. Consequently, when the cap is in place, the color of the lipstick can be seen by observing through the transparent cover that top portion of the lipstick which is out of the cylinder.
A major drawback of this type of lipstick container is that when the cap is being reinserted after an application of the lipstick, the lower portion of the cap may contact the exposed top portion of the lipstick unless the user is extremely careful. As the lipstick is by design soft and easily transferred on contact to another surface, the lipstick is transferred in this manner to the inside of the cap. As the cap is placed on the container, the residual lipstick already transferred to inside the cap is smeared over the sides of the cylinder. This is not only wasteful and aesthetically displeasing, but also results in the residual lipstick being transferred from the cylinder to the fingers of the user upon subsequent use. Of course, after repeated use of this prior art lipstick container, this condition and its effects become progressively worse. As a result, the prior art lipstick containers of this type inherently create a great deal of waste and mess but, nevertheless, are well-known and widely used.